Juventus FC
Preview
UCL/ECC wins : 2
The Old Lady of Turin returns to Europe's competition with one of Europe's greatest coaches at the helm which is not a comfortable thought for opposition. Stubborn he may be, arrogant he may be but the Don is one hell of a coach who has a winning track record. He has gone on record as saying that the UCL is Juve's top priority this season. The Juve management made a coup by getting Capello from bitter rivals Roma but then made a mess of it by letting go of Maresca and Miccoli. If they had kept hold of those two then the Juve side would be a up a notch or two for sure but their absence will hurt their cause because both players are good at what they do.
Juve is Benfica Part 2 with a long list of failures in the final of the UCL. They have a good record in Europe of reaching the finals otherwise but the conversion rate of finals to wins is piss poor. They will win the next final they get to but only time will tell which year will that be. It might not be this season as Capello's first aim will be to get Juve into the knock-out keeping in mind that he failed to do with it Roma and it has been a while since he tasted the drama of a knock-out tie in Europe's grand competition.
Offence
1/2
-> Trezeguet
-> Ibrahimovic
-> Del Piero
-> Zalayeta
Trezeguet and Zlatan are not likely to create something for themselves and are dependent on the supply considering that they are more of target men. Del Piero is on a constant decline and he can have a brilliant moment. It will be interesting to see if Capello can wave his magic wand and turn DP into something that he WAS. Zalayeta's only famous exploit will be the winner in the Camp Nou a couple of seasons ago. It was important to keep hold of Miccoli and convince him that he was needed even if he wanted to leave.
Midfield
1/2
-> Nedved
-> Emerson
-> Tacchinardi
-> Camoranesi
-> Kapo
-> Tudor
-> Olivera
-> Blasi
The midfield doesn't exactly strike fear into the opponents. It is workmanlike with a conventional look. Nedved and Emerson are the guys to control and more so Nedved. It also lacks creative spark and there is a lack of pace in the midfield. Selling Maresca is beyond me. And Capello prides in building strong midfields for his teams. It is hard to believe that he is satisfied with the squad he has.
Defence
-> Thuram
-> Cannavaro
-> Ferrara
-> Zambrotta
-> Birindelli
-> Zebina
-> Legrottaglie
-> Juliano
-> Pessotto
The defence is the healthiest in the team. It has world class names present and Capello's sides don't have a habit of leaking too many goals so with the players available in this area his side will be hard to break down if he plays the right players and leaves out clowns like Juliano.
Goalkeeper
-> Buffon
World's Best Goalkeeper.
Starting Line-Up
4-4-2
Capello should play this line-up as I believe this is the most productive line-up for Juve considering their dire lack of personnel.
-----------------------Buffon--------------------------
-
--Birindelli------Thuram------Cannavaro-----Zambrotta--
-
--Olivera-------Emerson------Tacchinardi----Nedved----
-
-------------------------------Del Piero----------------
----------------Trezeguet------------------------------
This side can be a handful for the opposition but over a season especially in Europe where the match winners a required to lift the team to another level ... will the team suffice?
The positive would be that Capello knows what he is doing and he has seen the team in trainings so he should know what he has to offer with his Juve side. Juve has a reputation of a club that makes good value for money transfers. In years I think this Summer's transfers were far from good for them but the Cannavaro transfer was Juve like!!!
Inter proved once again that they can take it to another level without moving a muscle!
Been 10 years since Capello lifted his solitary UCL title. Football has changed and evolved during this time and he has failed to win the European cup with other sides. Been a while since he took reigns of a European powerhouse and the last time he coached an Italian giant he conquered all. Can history repeat itself? It may but this squad does not seem to have it to WIN the European Cup but a serious challenge cannot be discounted. If they get to the final they will win it.